Ice and Mud

So we have had more snow in December than we have had in one month in - well I can't remember when. Usually snow is gone the same day it falls. Or no more than a day or so. But this time it has been more than a week and we still have snow in our yard. Or should I say ice. It has been so much colder than normal as well as more snow that the snow has not had a chance to melt. Part of the yard still has the frozen snow which gets slicker every day. And part is now a huge mud puddle.
Most of Star pony's pen is now drying fairly well, and the little ponies pen isn't far behind. But poor Nita, my Quarter Horse still have big mud puddles. Especially around her shelter. She has the largest pen and still has the most ice and mud left. One puddle must be at least 3 inches deep in the center.
I know I shouldn't complain. We need the moisture and other parts of the US fight with mud in horse pens most of the winter while we usually don't. But I really dislike having to put the truck in 4-wheel-drive before I can get out of my driveway. We have to do this every once in a while on our dirt road but not in the drive. For some reason all the melted snow seems to have tried to puddle in the drive which is usually hard packed cliche clay. For those that don't live in the desert when cliche clay gets wet is is slick as snot or so the saying goes, which explains why so many people that live out here have pickups with 4-wheel-drive. It is a necessaties. We have had at least one 4-wheel-drive pickup for the past 39 years. And No we do not get out and do that mud bogging thing that is show on TV. We have to fight with cliche mud enough that it is not fun. It is just a matter of getting to the job, store or the doctor and home again.
And poor Tuffee our Border Collie. She has run on the ice until her feet are sore so that she is limping first on one foot then on the other. I have been trying to keep her in but she is determained she is an outside dog (at least in the day) regardless of her feet.

Snowflakes

This morning there were snowflakes frozen on one of our windows. So very pretty to be able to see every part of them like this.

The Gift

Twinki was more than willing to unwrap the gift but it was Cassi that preferred to play with the toy mouse.

Cats Christmas

The dogs have been taught not to tear up anything so they didn't want to open their gifts but the cats didn't hesitate when offered the chance of opening gifts and playing in gift wrap paper.

Kitten Disaster

Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas but must admit I am glad it is over. It has been such a hassle this year what with the snow, rain, ice, mud and all the nasty weather. I got so upset everytime I tried to do some shopping because of all the other shoppers that were so rude everywhere I went. We did put up a tree although I was against the idea as I was afraid the now 7 month old kittens, Cassie and Twinki would spend all there time climbing it and knocking off the decorations. We put it on the new sunroom even though the sunroom isn't finished and it looked really nice in front of our floor to ceiling window. And a mircle, the kittens never climbed the tree although they did their darnest to pull off all the decorations in reach of the floor. But------- the canceled the idea of having any nicely wrapped packages under the tree. Twinki decided that all packages and gifts had to be unwrapped faster than the time it took me to wrap them. She would use her teeth by simply sliding her fangs across the package to tear the paper then start pulling at the small paper strips she had made. then she would start using her claw. I hadn't put any ribbons on anything as I expected them to pull ribbons off but not to unwrap the gift like that. She went from gifts to other things. Sometime ago we found that she though tinfoil was for tearing into tiny little silver flakes to scatter in the kitchen using her teath. But now she was going after plastic bags full of cookies. chip bags, cat food bags, dog food bags, a bag of sugar, and one of flour, and even a bag of cat litter. If it could be torn open using her teath or claws she was going to do it. Of course Cassi would sit watching until the bag would open and then help her scatter the contents. Thankfully most of the time I could hear the commotion and be able to remove the bag of what ever before there was to much of a mess. Presents were all put in the closet until Christmas morning, and all bags of food go in the refer or a cabinet now while the cat litter is in the garage.
I do have to admit I took lots of photos of them helping unwrap the gifts on Christmas morning and playing in the pile of left over paper and boxes.

Frozen Fog

3 mornings this week we woke to find a strange world of frozen fog. We couldn't see any farther than our own yard. It was as if the world didn't exist anymore beyond our place. It gave a odd, fantasy-like feel to everything. I took some photos but they don't have the true feel that I was getting as I wondered about. Within a few hours the fog was mostly gone but it was still dark, dreary days. It made me want to hybernate instead of getting out to finish my Christmas shopping.

Snow Dogs

Took these photos the other day when the dogs were playing in the snow. They were having fun but I was getting cold.

Women Writers Block

The site www.womenwritersblock.net is back up and there are several new stories that were posted today. New stories are posted on Mondays. Give them a try and let the authors know what you think of them. I know I'm going to as we are having another snow storm today so I will just stay in except for going out to feed the horses.

Christmas Story

For those that may have tried to get to my new Christmas story in the past few days, the server for that site, http://www.womenwritersblock.net/, has been down. I have been told it should be up and running again by Monday or soon there after. If you would like me to email a copy of the story please let me know.

Wondering Horse

The other night about 8pm I heard the neighbors dogs barking and my mare, Star, whinnying so I went out to see what was going on. At first I didn't see anything then something nudged me in the back. I knew instantly it was a horse, I've been nudged like that so many times, but what was one doing in front of the garage? It was my Quarter Horse mare, Nita. Apparently hubby or I didn't get her gate shut good when we gave them their afternoon snack and filled water buckets. I'm not sure how long she was out but by the time I got to her she was ready to go back to her pen for the night feeding we do at about 9pm.

Since we still have mud from all the rain we have been having it was easy to follow her tracks the next day and see where she had been. First she went to the cottonwood tree right outside her pen that has a nice bunch of grass growing at the base of the truck and ate the grass. Next she sampled some of my roses near the tree and tip-toed through a pile of used lumber and sheets of tin that we had pulled of the hayshed roof last year to replace with better material so the roof didn't leak. We have slowly been using the lumber and tin for some other minor projects but it was a messy pile of junk that no horse should have been in. Next she visited the two ponies in their pen and went on by the kitchen window and into the back yard. To get there she had to go under the brase that helps hold up the gate that is usually left open. The brase is just over 6 feet tall, enough for hubby to walk under. Nita is 15 and a half hands tall so if she had her head up she would have smacked into the brase. (you can see it in the photo taken last week when it snowed) She made a trip around the back yard and walked right by the hole that the dogs had dug that morning (I think they were after one of the rats that tunnel under the garden). She then when back out the same gate and by the kitchen again to where she was by the garage when she and I found each other.

I couldn't find even a tiny scratch on her. I think she might be the kind of horse the cowboys called a 'night horse' because they can get around in the dark so well. I was just glad she didn't get hurt.

New Christmas Story

I have a new story posted on www.womenwritersblock.net It is called Bordertown Christmas, and is about the old western - well 1988 - show called Bordertown. In the story it is Christmas Eve and Marshal Jack Craddock is lost in a snow storm. All of his friends are worried and him and trying to find him. Will they find him before it is to late?
On the Women Writers Block site my authors name is Stardust. Take a look and read a few stories.

Christmas Cartoons

Christmas Mood

To get you in the mood for Christmas visit
http://the-creative-exchange.com/ They have beautiful photographs.

Two Dogs Dining

I don't look at many short videos on the net but this one is to cute to pass up. http://http//www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=EVwlMVYqMu4&vq=medium#t=125
A good dog trainer with good actors.

Black and White Photos

Decided that all this snow was right for taking some black and white photos. Sometimes I just prefer the old fashioned look.

Neighbors Dogs

My neighbors dogs playing in the snow. A few years ago I bought one of the indestructible balls for horses to play with and of course my horses that play with a cheep football wouldn't have anything to do with the special ball I bought them with the handle on it. My dogs didn't like it either. My friend wanted something her Great Pyrenees couldn't destroy so I gave her the special ball but she didn't like it either. But my friends other two dogs thought it was the perfect thing for them. They love it. Finally some a pet likes the ball.

Decorating the Tree

We decorated the Christmas tree with the help of our 7 month old kittens which meant there was only lights, and non breakable decorations put on the tree and around our house. We put the tree in our new sunroom so that the door to the room and the tree would be closed at night so the kittens can't get into trouble in the decorations while we are sleeping. Of course with the snow we had last night and today the room hasn't been open that much in the day, either.

Cutting the Tree

We decided that since we wanted to get one more load of firewood we would also cut us a Christmas tree this year. We stopped at the Jemez Ranger Station to buy the permit to cut the tree then went up the mountain to cut wood. After we had the wood loaded we searched till we found the perfect little tree and cut it and loaded it on top of the wood to bring it home.